HEAD players Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría crowned World Padel Tour Master Final champions

The final round of the World Padel Tour, the Master Final, began 16 December. Over the course of four days Madrid Arena (Madrid, Spain) became the main venue for the tour’s last tournament, where the top eight pairings from the men’s and women’s rankings went head-to-head.

A total of six HEAD players earned enough race ranking points to qualify for the year’s last competition. In the men’s draw we had Sanyo Gutiérrez and Arturo Coello, meanwhile in the women’s draw, despite not being able to watch Tamara Icardo play as she pulled out injured, we got to see Ari Sánchez, Paula Josemaría and Aranzazu Osoro shine.

The “tournament of all tournaments” kicked off 16 and 17 December with the quarter-final matchups. Sanyo Gutiérrez advanced to the semi-finals after demonstrating superb serving and some of his best play yet to win 6-4, 6-3. After three highly intense sets the HEAD duo featuring Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría won the match in a nail-biting tie-break sending the crowd wild (7-6, 6-4, 7-6). Even so, Aranzazu was unable to clinch a spot in the semi-finals of the Master Final, losing against the tour’s no. 3 pairing. The same was true for Arturo Coello who, despite superb play and a stellar performance at the Madrid Arena, fell in the quarter-finals of this Master Final 3-6, 6-3, 2-6, bringing an end to his fine run.

In the semi-finals the HEAD players pulled out all the stops and dominated the court. Starting was Sanyo, who completely controlled the match and put on a padel clinic winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-3. Next up was Ari and Paula, who followed suit, playing at full steam and an unstoppable tempo to win the match 6-2, 6-0.

After a few hours rest, on 19 December Madrid Arena’s centre court welcomed the Master Final finalists, featuring three HEAD players: Sanyo Gutiérrez, Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría. The HEAD duo featuring Ari and Paula played impeccably and held their own in every game to win 6-4, 6-2, crowning them champions of the last competition of the year and masters of the tournament. Sanyo Gutiérrez faced the top-seeded pairing in the final, and despite staying hot on his opponent’s heels throughout the entire match, lost 6-4, 6-4 in a tightly contested final.

HEAD brings a close to a big season full of victories across the tournament calendar which was topped off by Ari Sánchez and Paula Josemaría taking home the trophy at the last event of 2021.